Judas
by Ael L. Bolt
Summary: Tag to Moebius part 2. Daniel's point of view on being snaked.


**Judas**

By Ael L. Bolt

Rating: PG-13 (T)

Genre: Drama

Summary: Tag to Moebius part 2. Daniel's point of view on being snaked.

* * *

"Impudent slave! You are indeed a stubborn creature."

Distantly, I can hear that strange hand weapon being turned off, but the black fog before my eyes refuses to dissipate. There's a soft scraping sound, followed by a faint splash and a squeal.

"My faithful servant…blend with this beast and give me his knowledge!"

What? Servant? I can't summon the energy to move and look, but the choice is taken from me as rough hands drag me to my knees. All I can do is whimper as my head is shoved down and my jacket collar pulled away from my neck. That squealing is getting louder, almost like…

Oh God!

The pain is like nothing I've ever felt before, like every nerve in my spine has been ripped out through my brain. A heavy presence tightens around my neck, squeezing almost spasmodically and sending me deeper into this dark place in my mind.

"Well?" the unnatural voice of my captor demands.

"He is indeed of the Tau'ri, my lord Apophis." A thrill of horror washes over me as I feel my mouth moving, hear my own voice, distorted and unrecognizable, out of my control. "He and the others arrived in a ship through the chappa'ai to steal your faithful servant Teal'c and turn him against you."

Get out of my head, oh God, get out of my head!

"They would seek to brainwash my loyal First Prime," the voice – Apophis, serpent god? – muses out loud, though he sounds anything but amused. "Such blasphemy! Come, give me the symbols to their world as we shall destroy them for this outrage."

In desperation, I try to blink my eyes, twitch my fingers, anything…but nothing happens. I thought the Goa'uld were horrific when the other me detailed them on the tape, but this…! I'm completely helpless to stop myself from writing down the coordinates for Earth.

"Well done. What other knowledge does he possess?"

No no don't tell him don't tell him!

"The Tau'ri have advanced much…they possess great weapons of power, though none as strong as our own technology. Their chappa'ai was only recently rediscovered but they have learned much of its use."

Oh please, don't do this! Don't make me betray my own people!

"Are they strong enough to challenge us?"

A sensation of claws, digging through my head, sending waves of sheer agony through the red-laced blackness. "Not at the moment," my voice says against my will, "but they may be capable of threatening us if left unchecked for long."

I can just barely see Apophis, wavering like a view from underwater, but my vision is slowly clearing…even more than normal. The pressure in my neck increases slightly and a tingling sensation attacks my eyes as my sight suddenly sharpens unnaturally. What the hell is it doing to me!

"We will attack immediately," Apophis decides. "Gather the fleet and launch when ready. You, my faithful servant, will keep the prisoners company and report their movements to me. If they succeed in taking my First Prime from me and he betrays us, you will eliminate him, but do not be so foolish as to reveal yourself before then."

My head bows, and there's a strange sensation in my throat. "Understood, my lord." Whoa…this is not good! It can imitate my voice too! Somehow it terrifies me more to hear myself without the strange metallic echo…no one will know until it's too late.

Get the hell out of my head!

You are mine now,- a new, cruel voice penetrates the darkness. –Mine to do with as I wish! You mean nothing to anyone.-

Damn you! Don't do this, please!

I'm completely helpless to resist as my body walks back towards the cell where my friends are kept. Four Jaffa follow me…us…and as we reach the beginning of the hall, the monster in my head turns to them. "To them, I have been interrogated and should be in much pain," my mouth says, even as I try to bite back every word. "You must drag me into the cell as you would any prisoner."

The Jaffa look slightly uncomfortable, but they incline their heads respectfully…a gesture I don't want! Please, no, don't listen to it! "As you wish, master."

Two of them grab my arms as my body goes limp, and they haul my passive form down the stone corridor like a sack of potatoes. If I wasn't so terrified I might be embarrassed…please, let one of them notice something wrong!

"Easy, easy! Get outta here!" I can hear O'Neill's abrasive tones scolding the Jaffa as they practically dump me at the top of the stairs. The Goa'uld doesn't move…what's it doing? Playing dead? Oh, please, someone notice something wrong…

O'Neill mutters something and I hear cloth shift as if he was kneeling down. The instant his hand touches my chest, the demon in my head says, "I didn't tell them anything!" Shit, shit, shit…come on, that's not me! Oh God, someone please save me from this monster!

"Good for you! How ya feeling?"

"Not so good, really…" That's a lie…this thing has healing powers like nothing I've ever seen. My eyesight's better than 20/20, the headache from that weird torture device is gone…hell, even my allergies aren't bothering me! But no one knows what I'm like…they'll never suspect something's wrong with me. God, no…

"Sorry." He sounds like he is, actually. I'm sorry too, Colonel…forgive me. "Maybe this'll make you feel better." I want to flinch away as he helps me…it…stand up, and the monster in me makes all the right noises of recovering from torture as Cosworth hands him my vest. A flicker of hope is immediately squashed by a ton of fear. Damn, don't let me kill Teal'c! We can't have come all this way to have me betray Earth and assassinate what we came for…

"How'd you…?" the Goa'uld asks, feigning confusion. Yeah, I can feel its cold, calculating mind discerning precisely how they got those, and I'm not liking it…

"Teal'c," Sam confirms, and I can't help but curse. Shit, shit, our newest ally just got handed a death sentence! "He brought us the camera; I showed him the tape."

"I don't think he can be trusted," my voice states. No…it's trying to get them to take him out so it can remain undercover! Damn it all to hell…!

"He gave us our weapons back; that's a good start," O'Neill mumbles as he adjusts his vest and checks his gun.

"He's gonna meet us on the way back to the ship," Sam clarifies, and that frigid cunning surfaces again. Ah shit…someone, anyone, please! I'm not me, you can't let it do this!

My dread turns to horror as O'Neill hands me his sidearm. "Safety off, point and shoot," he instructs, and my eyes narrow as the Goa'uld casually lifts it to point at his chest. "Not at me," he admonishes and slaps my hand away gently. A surge of foreign irritation flashes through my mind, but to my great relief, the creature pulls my face into an expression of embarrassment.

"I don't really like guns," Sam protests as Cosworth hands her a Beretta. Please, Sam, take it…it's your only protection from me. I don't want you to die too!

"Neither do I," O'Neill says sarcastically. "How do you feel about explosives?"

"Those I like a little better," Sam replies cheerfully. There's a strange tingle of confusion coming from the Goa'uld. Hah, take that, you bastard. We Tau'ri aren't so easy to understand as you thought! Maybe…someone will figure out what's wrong before I hurt anyone. Oh, I hope, I hope…

"Cover," Kawalsky advises as he finishes with the block of C4, and we all move back against the far wall. The Goa'uld watches the detonator intently, memorizing its usage for later. Oh please, don't let there be a later…!

The door blows, and within minutes we're out in the forest. The Goa'uld moves almost fluidly along the trail with a grace I never had, but some sort of danger sense warns me that something very bad is about to happen. Distantly I hear O'Neill using his radio to contact the other soldiers, but the sight of a fully-armed Teal'c stepping onto the path causes us all to grind to a halt. His staff weapon primes, and everyone lowers their weapons…except me.

"We've gotta get goin' here, we've got a whole battalion on our asses," O'Neill bluntly states, oblivious to the way my eyes are staring at Teal'c. His weapon is pointed right at me, and the Goa'uld in my mind sends me a wave of triumph.

The Shol'va senses me, but the others do not,- it crows triumphantly. –Witness the cunning of your master!-

I don't even have time to demand an explanation before white-hot agony explodes across my chest. Sickly-sweet smoke curls around my face as I fall backwards, but the impact of hitting the ground is nothing compared to the intense pain in my torso. And yet…already I can feel the healing tingle as the monster starts repairing my body. Oh shit, they think I'm dead, but it's just playing possum…

"What the hell was that!"

"Shoot him, Jack. Let's shoot him and get the hell out of here!" No, Kawalsky! Please, no, he's an ally, he did the right thing! Trust him!

"Why'd you do that?"

"He was a Goa'uld." Oh, thank God! He's getting the chance to explain…maybe they can stop me before I hurt someone. Wait…WAS a Goa'uld? "Apophis implanted him with a symbiote in order to gain access to the knowledge in his mind."

"How do you know?" Please, Colonel, now's not the time to be skeptical…I can feel the pain subsiding already, the Goa'uld isn't going to stay lying down forever…

"I can sense it. Your friend did not give in to torture."

"He's lying!" No, no, please…listen to him, Kawalsky! I don't want anyone to be hurt!

"Why would he lie, Kawalsky?"

"If he wanted us all dead, why aren't we surrounded by Jaffa right now?" Excellent, Sam! You have to convince him, there's not much time left…

"We will be in a few seconds if we don't get the hell out of here now, and I'm not taking him with us!" Shit…of all the people, this team had to have a pigheaded soldier-type who won't listen to reason. Come on, Kawalsky, he's telling the truth…I wish I could tell you myself, but I can't, and I don't think I ever will.

"Apophis has sent a fleet of ha'tak vessels to the Tau'ri." He knows? How? I can feel the Goa'uld's anger at having Apophis' plans to easily revealed, and I can't help but take the opportunity to distract him. Not so tough after all, are you, you parasitic snake? You don't stand a chance now!

"He's sending ships to Earth?" Don't sound so surprised, Sam…God, I never wanted to tell him! Please, someone release me before I betray you again!

"The symbiote implanted within Daniel Jackson was a spy intended to accompany you. Apophis now knows what Daniel Jackson knew. He knows that you came in a ship. He knows that the Tau'ri is a threat." Yes, thank you for warning them! Finally! Please listen, Kawalsky…

"How the hell do we know you're not a spy?"

Shit! Out of time!

I can only watch in horror as my hand whips up and fires two shots into Cosworth at point-blank range, spraying blood onto me even as the Goa'uld sits bolt upright and fires at Teal'c.

I must complete my mission!-

Only one bullet manages to graze the Jaffa's arm before O'Neill and Kawalsky whirl around to aim their weapons at me. I knew this was coming eventually…please, don't hesitate…don't let me kill anyone else…free me now!

The last sound I hear is automatic weapons fire raking across my chest. My body jerks and falls, darkness rushing in to fill my vision, the Goa'uld writhing in death throes. The pain is incredible, but I can feel noting but gratitude for the two soldiers. Thank you…thank you for freeing me…now I can't betray anyone anymore.

My eyes slide shut as I spiral into blackness.


End file.
